Book Review | This Poison Heart by Kalynn Bayron

Author: Kalynn Bayron
Published on: February 14, 2022
Publisher: Luna Van den Borre
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, LGBT+

This Poison Heart by Kalynn Bayron describes the life of a young girl called Briseis. This captivating and brilliant YA-novel highlights the importance of being true to your nature and embracing your inner power. From a really young age, Briseis had known she was no ordinary girl. She could manipulate the laws of poison and call upon flowers and trees by just being near. Her gifts, or some may call a curse, were to be always kept a secret; but when one day she inherits a strange and mysterious house, it's time to set those powers free and let nature do its thing.

As most stories, it wouldn't be an adventure if some strange things were not happening. Briseis possesses magic forged by nature itself and doesn't know how to use them yet. But as we must know by know, magic always comes with a price. Is Briseis willing to pay that price or is it simply too high? The house is not so ordinary as she ones thought it was, and some family secrets start to float above. A legacy of deadly and poisonous times lies ahead of her and time is catching up. Briseis needs to decide what fate she wants to follow as you only get one chance to prove yourself.

Kalynn Byron deserves more than just a five star rating as she is one of my favourite upcoming writers. She created a charming and alluring story that portrays not only the LGBT+ community, but also the importance of family secrets and ancestors. This Poison Heart was my first LGBT+ book, and I totally adored it. To be honest, I had expected less of a hearthrobing slow burn, but she really outdid herself. It was absolutely an amazing and heartwarming romance. Also the characters were outstandingly good written; I loved the fact that there were characters named after some Greek priestesses and godesses as it brought some mythology to the story.

Because of the Greek mythology that was woven into the story, it seemed that we got a new point of view of ancient Greek women. That way a new history was rebuilt that gets rid of myths and misinterpretations of the Greek women. It gets its own backstory. Although I really liked it, I can't help but mention that the ending was slightly rushed. Overall the plot was a bit slow paced; you got to experience Briseis' personal growth and acceptance towards magic. Most part of the book revolves around that exploration, while the action is more towards the end of the book. Not that it's a bad thing, seen as you need all the information to get the story.

I loved the atmosphere of this book and how it represented black girl magic. It was a fun and unique read. The overall use of plants, deadly or not, really stirred something in me and the need for plants in my own house is really adding up. The fact that she could combine the study of plants with strong familial relationships, romance and magical realism, really proves how good of a writer she really is. Every single one of the characters had their own kind of backstory and it just clicked.

As my final opinion, I think This Poison Heart will be the beginning of a stunning and thrill-seeking series with lots of gripping cliffhangers. The atmosphere of the book is clever, slow and overall calm until that calmness transforms into adventure, mystery and a stifling and thrilling plot. I don't know when the next book will be out in the series, but I can't wait to find out what Bayron has in store next for Briseis and her family.

My Rating : ★★★★★